Closing Bell: Brownsville Youth Paint a Mural About Incarceration

Young artists from Brownsville teamed up with local muralist Esteban del Valle to paint a mural about the “prison industrial complex” on the side of a supermarket on Junius Street. The all-male crew of teen artists spent three weeks in July developing the mural’s themes and designing it, and then another three weeks painting the wall with del Valle’s help.

Arts non-profit Groundswell organized the project as part of its Summer Leadership Institute, which brings together young artist and professional muralists to create powerful murals in neighborhoods across the city. This mural “aims to inspire a sense of self-empowerment and agency by engaging youth as agents of social change and active community contributors,” according to Groundswell. The young artists and del Valle will gather to dedicate the mural on August 28 at 2 pm at 417 Junius Street.